I have to admit, I think GIFs are the internet's greatest brainchild ever. I've been using them in the classroom to make the girls laugh, and I even use them in chat rooms to save me some typing time. Why write a message when a quirky little clip can convey it all? :D (yes, I'm that lazy)

          A few days ago, I was lost in thought thinking about what my life would look like in GIF form. That thought enticed me to create a list of what GIFs best describe my time thus far in Tokyo! I plan on adding more moments to the list as I encounter/remember them so keep checking back if you want to see more.  ENJOY~!

When you bring your favourite treat over from your country as omiyage, but soon realize that it`s an "acquired taste"...  EX. ketchup chips

When your phone suddenly runs out of power and your still out and about in the heart of Tokyo.

Being a 6" tall girl walking in a crowd full of 5" people.

Being packed into the morning train as rush hours gets into full swing.

The moment when you step into a restaurant or a shop and the server realizes you aren't Japanese and they have zero clue what to do with you.

When you walk into class in the morning and the students absolutely lose their bananas.

When you finish giving your class instructions, but you've used one too many words and their heads all turn at the same 90 degree angle.

My reaction every time this happens: "Sensei, I don't understand this word"

"It means ~"

"... I don't get it"

"It's sort of like ~" *insert intricate explanatory hand gestures here*

"... what does that mean?"

....

That moment where you become so good at explaining yourself though your hands that you might as well be teaching the kids sign language.

Adjusting yourself to the fact that schools only have heating in the classrooms and not in the hallways.

Realizing you have no willpower against Japanese food because it is just too dang good to resist.

When you're in a group of people and they switch into rapid Japanese speaking mode...

...but then they realize you can't understand so they try to include you and all you can manage to squeak out is a lame "soudesune" or "sugoi".

That moment when your "genki teacher face" permanently becomes your default face.

That weird transition from being no-so-super-patriotic to the sole spokesperson for your entire country...

The sheer joy of being able to drink in the streets.

When you spot another foreigner on the street and half of you feels like you should acknowledge them and the other half wants to ignore them.

Parties that carry on till the 5am train starts up.

The panic of catching the last train at midnight.

Adjusting to being asked SUPER personal questions about your body and love life on a daily basis.

Basically every single time I let myself go shopping in Tokyo.

Enduring the heat and humidity of a Japanese summer like...

My face when I see a cockroach, beetle, cicada... the list of freakishly gnarly Japanese bugs goes on and on...

What I feel like saying when people tell me how strange and foreign it is to wear sunglasses in Japan.

When your low on work and there aren't any other jobs for you so you make each task  reaaaaaaallllllyyyyy last.

Facing your fears and using the dreaded squat toilets...

Discovering the beauty of an overnight internet cafe for the first time

皆さん、久しぶりね！- Hey everyone, it's been a long time!

Over the New Years Holiday (Christmas isn't really that big of a deal over here apart from marketing gimmicks) my older brother and my cousin traveled from Canada to Japan to visit me. I had such a fabulous time being a tourist again for two whole weeks. We got up to some pretty cool shenanigans and fortunately, my brother was able to capture more of our misadventures on his new GoPro!

Click on the videos below and join in on our Tokyo times~!

多摩川 (Tamagawa River) is just one street away from my apartment complex. From here, you can have a clear view of Mount Fuji. There are also lots of little parks and running tracks scattered around the river bank making it an awesome place to chill on the weekends.

Genki Sushi is probably my favourite foreigner friendly sushi joint in Shibuya. You get the amazing combination of delicious food and a fun order and delivery service! There are always some really crazy sushi combos on the menu as well as illustrated by my brother eating a samon and natto roll (ew).

Here is the most famous spot in all of Shibuya! The scramble crossing. We went on a particularly empty day, but this crossing can be absolute madness during certain times. On certain holidays, I've had to wait for about 10 minutes to cross this bad boy.

My brother and cousin were sweethearts and they took me out to see the new Star Wars movie in 3D at the one and only TOHO Cinemas in Shinjuku! We decided to go to the top floor and say a nice Howdy-Ho to Godzilla first!

We decided to be super nerds and make a special trip up to the Pokemon Center. The plushies were certainly cute but I was kind of disappointed that it was only merchandise. 

This was my second visit to the Kawaii Monster Cafe in Harajuku and it certainly won't be my last visit. I absolutely adore this place. It's so kooky and cute at the same time. The food is a bit on the pricey side but that's to be expected when the cafe looks this cool. I love going around the cafe and posing with the "monstrosities" that work there.

Ahh New Years... The time of the year when you put that whole "out with the old, in with the new" motto on repeat. For Japan, it's quite literal. Stores go into crazy mode and sell everything at crazy low prices. They also do this amazing thing where they pack all of their old merch into bags, slap a 10$ sticker on them and sell them to the masses. I love the mystery of these happy bags!! 

The Emperor only makes public appearances on his birthday and on New Years. As such, we were lucky enough to go and hear him address the public on the second! The crowds were insane and when the emperor came out the crowd went absolutely wild. There were flags and many "BANZAI"s to be had.

Want to melt your eardrums and eyeballs at the same time? Go to the Robot Restaurant in Shinjuku! It is such a crazy mashup of scantly clad women, wacky robots, bad engrish, exploding lights, and hilarious plot lines. If you're looking to experience the weird underbelly of Tokyo, this is definitely where you should head to. It's great for a laugh.

 At the end of the day, I'm just so grateful that my bro and my cuz spent 14 hours on a plane to come visit crazy ol' me. With them here, I've been able to see many new and curious parts of Tokyo that I hadn't explored before. I'm definitely going to miss annoying the heck out of them (as a proper little sister should do), but I look forward to the next family gathering whether that's in Canada or Japan! 

A snow capped Mount Fuji stands tall behind beautiful Lake Ashi

Oooo look-y look-y what we have here! An actual blog post about my adventures in Japan! How utterly unexpected of me!

Since Monday was a national holiday (勤労感謝の日, Kinro Kansha no Hi, Labor Day) a few of my good friends and I decided to celebrate the long weekend with a girl's getaway to Hakone! We really wanted to escape the city for a few days, and let me tell you now, Hakone is a beautiful place to escape to! It was my first time being surrounded by such breathtaking scenery. Everywhere you look in Hakone there are mountains and autumn leaves and glistening lakes. The air was also so clean and fresh on the mountains and it made me feel like I was home in the countryside of Canada again (so long as I avoided catching a whiff of sulfur air...P.U.!)..

In case some of you are considering Hakone as your go-to travel destination while in Japan, I'm going to list what I got up to on my vacation, where I stayed, and what my recommendations are so you can make the best out of your time and money!

Hakone FreePass

I can't say enough good things about the Hakone FreePass! It was around 5.000 Yen (50$ Canadian dollars) for one of these passes, but it was transportation and entertainment all in one! By using this pass, we were able to leave from Shinjuku station and get all the way down to Hakone-Yumoto in about an hour and a half without forking over thousands of yen. The only confusing part about this pass was trying to navigate through Shinjuku station in order to find the ticket counter and then find the corresponding train platform. It can't really be helped though. Shinjuku station is a well known garish nightmare. Even the most seasoned transit takers get lost in the poorly designed abyss that is Shinjuku station... 

Once we were in Hakone, I was so surprised by how fun taking public transportation was! The trains were more tourist friendly with tables and comfy chairs and all of the tracks weaved intricately around the mountains so you could catch a glimpse of some really beautiful scenery. Another thing that makes the freepass an amazing travel must-have is the fact that you can ride the cable cars and the tourist pirate ship cruises around Hakone and its all included! All you have to do is flash your pass all Men-In-Black badass style and you can hop from a train to a ship seamlessly.  

One of the cable car routes was unavailable due to volcanic activity.... Made for a cool smokey picture though!

Cable car station up on the mountain top

Riding up the mountainside in these nifty cable cars was definitely one of my favourite adventures in Hakone. From the car you can see a lot more of the mountains and the forests. Luckily, we were in Hakone at the perfect time and we could enjoy a sea of red, orange, and yellow leaves. These cable cars also had these hilarious selfie props that we made quick use of being the selfie obsessed twenty-somethings that we are.

Pirate ship ahoy!!

The pirate tourist cruise is also a must-do on any Hokane travel bucket list. With the freepass, we could explore all four levels of the ship, but we couldn't go into the first class area which was at the very front of the ship. Other than not being able to reenact the classic scene from Titanic, we weren't bothered too much by that. This ship is a great way to see all of Lake Ashi, and as a lake formed in a caldera around 3000 years ago, it's quite a sight to see. Unfortunately, seeing Mount Fuji from this cruise is not as easy as they make it sound. Any small amount of clouds or fog will completely wipe poor Mt. Fuji out of view.

Gora Park

We emerge from Gora Station ready to face the mountains!

On our way to our ryokan, we stopped in Gora to visit one of its famous parks. This park is such a hidden gem. From Gora station, you have to trek uphill for a few blocks until you happen upon a large Parisian garden with fountains, rose gardens, cafes, and greenhouses. I got a chance to see the last of the roses and for some bizarre reason, there was a steel drum performance at the fountain when I was there so that was an added bonus. Another really amazing part of this park is that there is a quiet, old school Japanese tea house nestled in with the trees. I didn't get a chance to try it out, but the sign said only 500 Yen (5$ Canadian Dollars) to have traditional tea and snacks and the atmosphere was so serene there that I can only imagine it would be well worth your time to check it out.

Beginning the hike up to Gora Park!

There is a small cafe on the left, steel drummers in the middle, and a beautiful mountain scenery in the back. What more could you ask for?!

I'm obsessed with roses. I'm so glad these blooms held out for my visit!!

The main path in the rose garden.

With our freepass, entrance to Gora Park was free, but without the pass I think the cost is around 500 Yen (5$ Canadian Dollars). Depending on what season you go (spring would probably be the best with its cherry blossoms and azaleas) I think the park is well worth the price you pay.

Ryokans and Hot Springs

Without a doubt, onsen visits are a must when you travel outside of the city limits. A lot of travelers are uneasy about going to hot springs in Japan, but it's really not all that embarrassing. Once you get over the fact that you are naked with a bunch of random Japanese people, there really isn't anything left to worry about. After that you can finally enjoy the relaxing and healing hot spring waters of Japan!

In Hakone, there are many well known onsens to choose from. You also have the option to just do a sort of "day visit", or you can stay at that onsen overnight and enjoy the traditions that go along with spending the night at a ryokan.

Our ryokan was called Hotel Musashiya and I would definitely give it 9 anime thumbs up out of 10. The place itself isn't in tip-top condition as it is a bit older, but what it lacks in novelty, it makes up for in hospitality. I can boldly say that I've never stayed at a more welcoming and friendly place.

The onsens in this ryokan weren't very large and they are definitely geared more towards a family audience. However, their baths look straight out onto the lake and you can soak outside whilst gazing out into the reflection of the moon over the mountains. It's beyond picturesque!

Hanging out in our room in Yukatas, drinking tea and getting ready for the onsen!

One of my favourite moments from our overnight stay was when all three of us girls completely gaijin-failed at putting our yukatas on. We fumbled with the obis for a while and even tried to follow a youtube video, but in the end we decided just to throw our senses of pride out the door and phone down to the front desk. Within minutes of explaining to the lady at the front desk that we didn't know how to properly wear our yukatas, she was at our door ready to dress us like the little children that we were. It seemed like the staff was always at our beck and call as they called us out for our meals, served our tea, and put out our futons, It was definitely a royal treatment!

This is our lovely lake view room

This is the view from our ryokan. The lake was stunning in the morning

No matter what country you're in, a girl's night will always be a good time guaranteed!

Sengokuhara Grass

If you enjoy hiking, nature, and feeling as if you were smack dab in the middle of a Studio Ghibli film, then this is the place for you! In autumn, the once green hill of grass changes into a sea of gold. It was honestly one of the most therapeutic hikes I've ever trekked. This area was rated as one of the fifty best sights to see in the Kanagawa prefecture and I definitely have to agree! A word to the wise, the trails are very rocky and a bit uneven at times so be sure to go prepared with proper footwear.

Grass, mountains, forests, oh my!

The start of our hike into the field of silver grass!

Hakone Shrine

This was the first time for me to see a torii gate in water. During the day time, it reflects so beautifully off of the lake, and at night, spotlights light up the torii so it can be seen from almost anywhere along the waters edge. I wasn't able to learn a lot about the history of this shrine while I was in Hakone (the whole lost in translation dealio...), but when I got home I did some digging and I found out some pretty cool information about it! Apparently, this shrine was once at the summit of a neighboring mountain, but was moved down to lake Ashi in order to pacify the nine-headed dragon living in the belly of the lake. Now, I didn't see any nine-headed dragon while I was there, but I think the story is fascinating just the same. 

Looks like a portal into another world!

Is this the nine-headed dragon they were talking about!?!

The main road leading up to the shirne

Alas! This concludes my little exposé on Hakone. As a quick last mention, I also recommend that you visit the Open Air Museum and eat lots and lots of onsen-manju when you go. I hope that when you get the chance to explore this area of Japan, you will have just as much fun as I did scaling mountains and sailing through lakes! 

Bye bye for now~!